What Makes You Smile?
by Ikitsumi
Summary: Oneshot, fem!AmericaxIceland, fanon human names used. Based on a RP with SakuraMauToki.  Warning: Norway and Iceland are somewhat OOC or possibly have switched personalities.


Eiríkur ignored Mr. Puffin's indignant squawk as a knock interrupted breakfast time.

"Oi Eiríkur, it better not be that snarky guy!" the bird told Eiríkur in a condescending tone, though the statement was ignored.

The silver-haired boy approached the door, opening it to reveal two people-one who threw his mind into a momentary state of bewilderment before he remembered who she was.

"I believe you had a guest, though different from who you told me it would be," the male guest said in a rather deadpan tone, staring at his younger brother. He stepped aside to let the other person happily scurry in Eiríkur's house from the cool weather.

"Howdy Eiríkur! It's been a long time!" the girl chirped. Two star-shaped barrettes held back her wind-whipped golden hair, which would explain why she was eager to come inside. After all, this place was somewhat cold compared to her home.

"I'm just wondering...why are you here again?" Lukas asked the girl, obviously annoyed by her presence; it just reminded him too much of a certain other sibling of his. His steel-blue eyes met the amethyst of Eiríkur's in an accusing look.

"Eiríkur said that my brother could come over for a tour," the girl snapped at Lukas, who shrugged and went to the table as she muttered things under her breath about his attitude. "Unfortunately, he said he was busy with other things so he let me come in his place."

"Ah, so that's why you're here instead, Amelia..." Eiríkur said, wondering why the rambunctious American girl was here instead of her brother.

"She's your guest, so you should take care of her," Lukas told Eiríkur as he picked up a piece of fish and held it out to the equally-annoyed bird.

"Fine." Eiríkur waved the girl over to the living room.

She complied and set her suitcases down before looking at Mr. Puffin at the kitchen table. "Oh, cute and cool bird!" she exclaimed, going over to him and stroking his feathers.

"Of course Mr. Puffin is proud to be called cute..." Eiríkur mentally face-palmed as he saw the bird staring at his new admirer. "Lukas, if you're hungry, you know where the food is," he called to Lukas, knowing that even his brother couldn't survive on solely coffee. "Amelia, do you want something to eat as well?"

"If that's no trouble. Airplane food isn't the best, no matter where you are," Amelia said as she started feeding Mr. Puffin, rather amused by the bird.

"Oi Eiríkur, this girl's pretty! Can we keep her around?" Mr. Puffin asked the Icelandic boy, receiving a prompt "no" in response.

After eating the meal Lukas prepared, Amelia looked at Eiríkur. "Still having tourism issues? 'I'm wanting tourists and to be more popular' is how my brother would phrase it when he talked to me."

"Leave it to the self-proclaimed hero to know only that," Lukas rolled his eyes.

"Don't forget to throw idiot in there," Amelia chimed to the surprise of the other three. "Anyways, I can probably convince him to help out with your tourism. Take me around the Golden Circle, hm?" she asked Eiríkur with a wink as she produced a camera from her pocket.

Eiríkur nodded and scooped up Mr. Puffin before going outside, knowing the bird didn't like to be apart from him.

"I'll make sure to have him back by dinner!" Amelia called to Lukas as she trotted to the front door, closing it behind her.

One of Lukas' eyes twitched as he saw the mess of dishes around him.

::-::

"We're back!" Amelia announced cheerfully as she and Eiríkur stepped through the front door. Her cheeks were painted pink from the wind outside-as if her messy hair didn't indicate this.

"Welcome back..." Lukas replied as he sat up, having been napping on the couch. "You two were out for awhile..." he continued in a sleepy tone.

"Wasn't anything bad," Amelia responded with a wave of her hands, then paused, glancing to the Norwegian man. "I need to talk to you in private," she told Lukas suddenly, going to the living room and leaning over the couch to look him in the eyes. Her expression had changed from her normal carefree one to one of urgency.

"What makes your brother smile?" she asked, keeping it in a hushed tone so Eiríkur wouldn't hear.

After a long silence between the two, Lukas sighed and finally responded with "I thought you would know."

"Eh...well, I'll find out sometime!" Amelia exclaimed as she retreated to the kitchen, glancing at the clock before going to feed a slice of fish to Mr. Puffin. "Hey you guys, I'll cook dinner tonight. Is there anything you want in particular?" she asked the brothers as she went to go wash her hands.

"Ah, you don't have to bother yourself with that..." Eiríkur said as he walked over to her so he could do it instead.

"It's no problem," the American girl replied, waving a hand as she dried off her hands with a nearby towel.

"In that case, I'm not craving anything in particular," Lukas called from the living room, laying back down on the couch.

"Neither am I," Eiríkur said, admitting defeat and leaving Amelia to do as she wished in the kitchen. He went to go see Lukas, leaning over the couch and looking down at his brother's face.

"So what happened?" Lukas asked, his eyes meeting Eiríkur's.

"Just took her around the Golden Circle is all," Eiríkur replied, though his fidgety behavior wasn't fooling the Norwegian sibling. After a few more seconds of prolonged steely gaze, he sighed. "Well, after we left..."

::-::

_"So where will we be going first?" Amelia asked as she tucked her scarf in her jacket, making sure it was snug and prevented cool air from reaching her body._

_"To see some of the villages and historical sites," Eiríkur replied, scanning the road to see if a taxi was anywhere nearby._

_"Okay!" Amelia responded brightly, rocking back and forth on her heels for a few seconds before she stopped. "Hey, Eiríkur. If you want tourists to enjoy their stay in Iceland, why don't you show more enthusiasm?" she asked, surprising the Icelandic teenager._

_"...but...I am enthusiastic," Eiríkur countered, though in Amelia's eyes, he didn't show it at all._

_Amelia leaned over. "Something like...more of a smile?" Amelia poked his cheek lightly, smiling lightly as she did so._

_"Smile?" Eiríkur asked, physically showing no reaction to the motion while his mind raced a little bit._

_"__Yep, people are much more approachable when they can smile!" Amelia said as she returned to rocking on her heels. "I mean, you're approachable," she continued with a somewhat nervous giggle "but...you know, if you at least appear to be happier, people don't have to be put off or anything."_

_As Eiríkur contemplated her words, he didn't hear the girl ask herself something out loud, only catching the world 'how'._

_"Well, while I think of ways, let's head over to those various places you mentioned," Amelia chirped, shaking Eiríkur out of his train of thought._

_"Wha...oh, yeah," Eiríkur mumbled as he waved a taxi over._

::-::

"Sorry if it's not much, but I was kind of craving shrimp scampi..." Amelia admitted as she set the table, finishing everything by the time the two brothers came to the table. "Oh yeah, what to drink?" she asked, catching Eiríkur's eyes with a knowing smile.

"Coffee," Lukas interjected, sitting down as Amelia went to go brew some fresh coffee and immediately rush for the refrigerator afterward. "Eiríkur, considering she's a guest, it's rude not to help her out..." he told the Icelandic teenager.

"Then you should have no problem helping her with the dishes afterward, hypocrite," Eiríkur replied instantly, going to get glasses and ice for him and Amelia's cola.

"You didn't even help her cook," Lukas retorted as Eiríkur came to sit back down.

"Both of you shut up and eat," Amelia snapped, making the two brothers look at her before they begrudgingly started eating Amelia's cooking, though Eiríkur managed to slip in a "neither did you" to Lukas.

"Amelia," Lukas said as he took another helping, "if you can achieve your 'goal' by the time we get done eating, then I'll do the dishes," he said, looking at her.

"Oho, is that a challenge?" Amelia responded with a grin and a glint in her eyes. "Then..." She tapped her chin. "I wonder how Eiríkur would feel if he was able to watch the auroras while lounging in a hot spring?" Amelia wondered out loud, glancing to the Icelandic male to see if her words provoked any reaction from him.

Eiríkur blinked. "It...would be nice," he admitted.

"Maybe eating licorice too? How about brennivín?" she asked with a small smile and a tilt of the head. When she got no response, she threw herself back in her chair. "You're a hard one to figure out!" She puffed her cheeks out and crossed her arms, provoking a smirk from Lukas.

"Looks like I won't have to do the dishes," the Norwegian man said in a somewhat sing-song voice.

"Can it, you!" Amelia retorted, then looked back to Eiríkur. "I brought a CD from back home, it's got tracks from the top artists. Where's the sound system so we can listen?" she asked him.

"Ah, it's over there." Eiríkur pointed to the music player in the living room.

"Cool, thanks," Amelia replied as she jumped up to go rummage through her suitcase for the CD.

Lukas sneezed just as Amelia found a pack of tissues in her bag, making another idea form in the American's head.

"Oi Lukas, think fast!" she called, tossing the package at him only to smack him in the forehead with it.

Eiríkur's eyes showed the faintest hint of amusement, but he didn't show it.

"_This guy either really learned something from his brother or it's just not good enough. Let's just go with the latter_," Amelia thought as she pranced to Lukas. "Oh sorry Lukas!" she mock-exclaimed, grabbing a tissue and prodding his face with it. "My aim's terrible, please excuse me!" she continued with a grin, glancing over to Eiríkur every once in awhile.

Lukas retaliated by grabbing the pack of tissues and chucking it at her, missing by a long shot.

"Heh, but it looks like I'm not the only one! Oh, is that annoyance on your face?"

"Eiríkur, she's acting like Dan..." Lukas grumbled.

Amelia chose at that moment to point at her chest. "I am a girl, remember that!" She turned to Mr. Puffin and tilted her head. "Hey Puffin, isn't this guy really, I dunno...snarky or something like that? He's fun to tease!" she half-shouted happily, ignoring Lukas' scoff.

"Oh man, I love this girl! She knows how I feel!" Mr. Puffin exclaimed, earning a sigh from the siblings.

"Just keep pushing," Eiríkur murmured, seemingly on Amelia's side now to Lukas' disdain.

"Sweet," Amelia replied as she took a piece of Mr. Puffin's fish and held it over Lukas' head.

"What do you think you're doing?" the Norwegian man snarled. As soon as Mr. Puffin stood up, he followed suit and backed off. "No," he told Amelia threateningly.

"Alright, you can feed him," Amelia replied in a simple manner, tossing the fish at Lukas and watching him catch it before it hit him in the face. "Hey, your coordination's better now," she observed with an amused grin. She picked up another piece of fish and debated on whether to throw it.

"Go for it," was all she needed to lead Mr. Puffin to Lukas' head and admire how perch-like he appeared.

"...Eiríkur...time..." Lukas growled, his eye twitching as he managed to catch a glimpse of the clock before Mr. Puffin settled in his hair.

Amelia's eyes shot open as she saw the clock. "Geez, it's late already!" she exclaimed, running to the table and cleaning it up hurriedly.

Lukas sighed before he went to the sink, pushing Amelia away from it. "You go ahead," he told her, rolling his sleeves up and starting to wash the dishes.

Amelia blinked before she looked from him to Eiríkur in confusion, narrowly dodging the keys that Lukas tossed to his brother.

Eiríkur nodded. "Follow me," he said as he caught Lukas' car keys, going to the door and holding out Amelia's camera.

Amelia was still somewhat confused, but hurriedly followed Eiríkur with anticipation as she fixed her scarf again. "You're not bringing the puffin?" she asked, utterly confused as he shook his head no.

Eiríkur waited for Amelia to get in the passenger seat of the car before he started up the engine.

"Hey, it's already sunset, so...nowhere's really going to be open, right?" Amelia asked, but got no response. With him not saying much, the American girl spoke up again. "Eiríkur, remember what I said earlier? More enthusiasm for a better atmosphere!"

Still no response, but she felt she heard him say something. "Hm?" she asked.

"Nothing..."

"Oh, alright..." With that, she sat there listening to the hum of the car and enjoying the heater, nodding at the occasional "almost there" and "not much further" he would say. She honestly wasn't sure what to expect, her mind still somewhat out of it before she realized he'd turned off the ignition.

"We're here," he told her, getting out of the car and nodding to the open field before them and pointing at the sky. Eiríkur handed her the camera and stood behind her, watching the sky.

Amelia was still confused, but let out a gasp as she saw why they were here. As soon as the first of the auroras appeared in the dark sky, she stood mesmerized for a few seconds before she turned on her camera and lifted it up to snap photos. After several minutes, she made a sweeping motion with the camera to capture a panorama image.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Eiríkur asked quietly as she lowered her arms to let them rest.

"Mhm," Amelia replied in an voice unusually tiny for someone with her loud and commanding personality "Seeing this makes me wonder why there aren't as many tourists as you'd like, to be honest," she continued in that low voice.

"No one wants to visit such a cold, desolate wasteland..."

Amelia turned around in shock as she heard those words, feeling somewhat broken at first. "That attitude as well..." she bit her lip. "You know, Eiríkur, it's going to be hard to get tourists if you're not even confident or can focus on the good aspects here. You've got hot springs, auroras, and other nice things. Advertise the Golden Circle more, you know?"

Eiríkur nodded slowly in response, getting a smile from Amelia.

"Don't worry, I'll help you get more tourists! I've got connections that'll help as well, you know? But for now," she continued, "let's enjoy the view."

They stood there for awhile, admiring the waves in the sky before Amelia broke the calm silence again.

"You're lucky you get to see this."

Eiríkur looked at her with a bit of surprise. "You can't see this back at your home?" he asked her.

Amelia shook her head a little bit sadly. "I'm not sure about up north, I tend to stay in the southern areas. Can't see auroras from that far south unless it's a rare occurrence, but still..."

"I see..." the Icelandic boy murmured.

"Aah, sorry if I talk too much!" Amelia exclaimed, waving her arms a little bit and turning on her camera again to take more photos.

"It's alright," Eiríkur assured her.

A few more photo opportunities passed. "Hey Eiríkur, come here in front of me for a moment?" Amelia requested.

Eiríkur blinked, then walked in front of her as she wanted.

"Hold still," Amelia said as she backed off, aiming the camera at him with the auroras in the background and snapping a picture to his surprise. "These would make interesting tourism advertisement images," she remarked, earning a nod from Eiríkur.

When she was done, she let out a sigh and put the camera back into her pocket, smiling as Eiríkur returned to her side. "I'm glad I got to come here," she told him.

"You are?" Eiríkur asked.

"Well, of course! It's not that cold here considering the location, plus I get to spent time with a fellow Coke lover!" she replied with a small laugh. "Oh, I brought a little something..." the American girl rummaged through her pockets and fished out a small plastic bag, holding it out to Eiríkur. "Licorice?" she offered.

"Oh...thanks," Eiríkur replied, staring at the bag for a moment before he held out his hand and let Amelia pour some of the candies into his palm.

"I don't know if my brother can handle the taste of this, it's kind of strong. I think he prefers a milder version of it we make back home," Amelia added as an afterthought, chewing on some thoughtfully. "Speaking of brothers, I...wonder how Lukas is doing right now?"

Back at Eiríkur's house, Lukas nearly dropped and broke a dish as he sneezed, glaring at the puffin who took residence on top of his head again.

"He's fine, we can leave him alone for awhile," Eiríkur answered, watching the auroras.

"Mmkay," Amelia said in a rather cheery tone, rocking back and forth on her heels again. "_Well...I wonder what'll happen when we go back. I did lose my bet_." She shrugged with a small sigh before her blue eyes flickered towards the sky again. "Hey hey Eiríkur, that's a full one there!" she exclaimed, immediately going for her camera to capture the image.

Eiríkur stepped back so he wouldn't be in the way, letting Amelia take photos to her heart's content. With her distracted, he vaguely remembered the question she posed to Lukas back at his house, the corners of his lips faintly rising.

"_You of all people should know the answer._"


End file.
